Game #64 Preview — Dash at Wilmington
Game #64 — Away Game #33
Winston-Salem Dash (25–38) at Wilmington Blue Rocks (21–39)
Monday, June 13–6:35 p.m.
Frawley Stadium (Wilmington, Del.)
GAME BACKGROUND:
Winston-Salem tied the game with four in the top of the ninth, but Carolina walked off with a 9–8 win in the bottom half of the inning of Sunday’s duel at Five County Stadium. The Dash begin the second leg of their week-long road trip with the first of three at Wilmington on Monday.
STARTING LINEUP:
Toby Thomas drove in a season-high three RBIs on Sunday (Jody Stewart/W-S Dash).
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Hunter Jones — CF
Mason Robbins — LF
Gerson Montilla — 3B
Nick Basto — 1B
Marcus Davis — DH
Toby Thomas — 2B
Chris O’Dowd — C
Michael Suiter — RF
Cleuluis Rondon — SS
Matt Cooper — RHP
- The Dash will turn to right-hander Matt Cooper in an attempt to snap a three-game skid. Cooper paces the Minor Leagues with 92 strikeouts, two more than Blake Snell of Durham (Triple-A, Tampa Bay) for the top spot. Cooper has logged his 92 punchouts in just 72.2 innings, amounting to a ratio of 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings. The former University of Hawaii star has amassed at least five strikeouts in all 12 outings.
- Cooper will try to get the Dash’s starting staff back in the swing of things. Winston-Salem’s rotation has given up 12 runs in the last two games spanning 11.2 innings (9.26 ERA). In the previous 10 contests, the Dash’s staff submitted a 1.71 ERA (15 ER in 79.0 IP), with no hurler giving up more than three runs in a start. While in the midst of that torrid stretch, Winston-Salem posted a quality start in eight games.
- Toby Thomas went 3-for-4 with a season-high three RBIs in Sunday’s loss, capping a strong weekend for Winston-Salem’s primary second baseman. Thomas went 6-for-11 in the final three games of the series in Zebulon. This followed an 18-game stretch during which Thomas went just 9-for-66 (.136). Overall this season, the former 21st-round pick is tied for third on the Dash with 23 RBIs, while his 16 doubles pace the squad.
- The second leg of this week-long road trip starts on Monday night in Wilmington with the first of a three-game set. The Dash rallied for a series win over the Blue Rocks from June 4–7 at BB&T Ballpark. Over the last two seasons, Winston-Salem has gone 9–11 (.450) at pitcher-friendly Frawley Stadium after posting a 15–5 (.750) mark on the Riverfront from 2012–13. This is the first of two trips for the Dash to Delaware this year, with the other marking the final regular season meetings from June 30 to July 3.
- Since his 16-game hitting streak came to an end on Friday night, Marcus Davis has recorded consecutive multi-hit games. During that hit streak, the sixth-longest by a Winston-Salem hitter during the Dash era (2009-present), Davis only recorded two multi-hit games. Sunday marked Davis’ second multi-RBI game since May 8 after accomplishing the feat seven times during the season’s first month. Davis’ 30 RBIs are second-most on the club.
- Outfielder Hunter Jones is one of three men in the Carolina League who has played all of his team’s games, joining Myrtle Beach’s Yasiel Balaguert and Ian Happ. Jones paces the CL in games (63) and at-bats (247), while he stands tied for first in triples (7), second in hits (72), fourth in runs (46), fourth in stolen bases and eighth in batting average (.291). Jones is one of two Dash players heading to next week’s All-Star Game in Lake Elsinore, Calif. (Cooper).
- After posting six straight multi-hit games from May 30 to June 6, Mason Robbins has been mired in a 1-for-16 funk in his last four games… Robbins still stands sixth in the Carolina League in batting average (.293), though he was atop the circuit in average before this recent slide… Cooper is second to teammate Spencer Adams in innings pitched in the CL (79.2 to 72.2).
BROADCAST INFORMATION:
Monday’s game will be broadcast live on wsdash.com/broadcast and the TuneIn Radio app. The Pregame Dash will begin at 6:20 p.m., with the first pitch set for 6:35 p.m.
-Joe
